A detailed look at the game of Dungeons & Dragons and all things related

Friday, October 24, 2014

Class Showcase: Druids

It’s
week four of my Class Showcase series, where I take a class from D&D and
give three examples from popular culture. This week: Druids.

#3 Beorn
(The Hobbit)

For
those people who have read the book, as opposed to watching the Peter Jackson
movies, the character of Beorn provides the heroes with much needed help and
shelter during their perilous journey to the Lonely Mountain. He is described
by Tolkien as a shape-shifter and is descended from a race of men who all had
the ability. He also raises animals at his homestead but it is specifically
written that they are not for the purposes of food. Within the book itself, his
encounter with the heroes of the story convince him that he must shake off his hermit lifestyle and join the fight against the growing evil.

#2 E.T.
(E.T. The Extra Terrestrial)

I
realize that some of you might be saying, “E.T. can’t be a Druid!”, well hear
me out. According to extra material written for the movie and the “E.T.
Adventure” ride, Stephen Spielberg describes E.T. and his fellow aliens as
botanists from a distant solar system looking for help in healing their planet
from a deadly disease. During the course of their experiments on earth, E.T.
gets accidentally left behind and is eventually taken in by a young boy named
Elliott. While he makes attempts to contact his race and be rescued, we
discover that he has access to several abilities including: empathic-link,
levitation, plant regeneration, and animal regeneration. He even displays the
ability to create deep connections with animals, which unfortunately from his
perspective would be with us humans. All of that sounds a lot like a Druid to
me.

#1 Groot
(Guardians of the Galaxy 2014 Film)

I know,
I know, two aliens in the same week. But maybe pop culture is trying to tell us
earthlings that we need to smarten up where caring for nature and the
environment is concerned because it obviously means something to the other more
“mature” races of the galaxy. Anyhow, Groot himself exhibits more Druid-like
powers than any other film character I have ever witnessed. He has the ability
to shape-shift, he can regenerate, he can create “magical” effects (such as the
light spores), and he is also quite adept at befriending animals (sorry if that
insults you Rocket). In fact, it wouldn't be all that difficult to recreate Groot as a D&D character as long as your DM would be willing to allow
Trents as a playable race.